Down the Rabbit Hole of Networked Teaching
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Recently however I have been reflecting over my career as an educator and have taken notice about how my practices have changed in the brief thirteen years since I started back in 2005. When I first began teaching like so many of you I remember struggling the first few years to accumulate vast amounts of resources that I kept carefully tucked away in my file cabinet that I horded like a dragon protecting its gold. I worked really hard on my transparencies so that I could preserve them for future use (only to find them obsolete about as quickly as they were made) and then after my class was pretty well setup I could just kinda coast on autopilot (I hope that last sentence made you cringe about as bad as I cringed writing it). Little did I know at the time that by coasting by on autopilot and like so many of our colleagues paying the tiniest amount of lip service possible to the phrase "Life-Long Learner" I was condemning my students to mediocre lessons that were less than engaging and myself to a one way track towards the dreaded teacher burnout.
So what changed? I think it was my third or fourth year teaching that the counselors came into my room to give a presentation and brought a projector with them and for some unknown reason they left it behind. I didn't feel obligated to give it up so I started creating some lessons and presentations of my own using the projector. At the time it felt like a refreshing change and was certainly more engaging for my students than that overhead projector but essentially I was still doing things the same. Again a few years later I finally got my smart board (in part I think because I refused at this point to give up my projector) and I began to implement that in MY instruction as well. The point here is that even with new technology I was doing things the same. The simple truth to me was this is how I knew how to do my job. That was the way my teachers did it and it worked for me right?
Now the problem is that we simply do not live in that world anymore. We are globally connected in ways that were virtually unimaginable when I first started teaching. Furthermore it is expected that we are providing our student with the ability to navigate their way through this new interconnected digital world that is new even to us and how can we do that if we ourselves are illiterate concerning the capabilities of this new technology. Here is the good news; you don't have to go it alone. One of the most amazing aspects of being interconnected in a global environment is that we have the potential to make contacts globally who can you can share and collaborate with on a massive scale. In essence I no longer have a file cabinet in my classroom; I potentially have millions of file cabinets in my room taking up less space than a student desk. The trick is simply to get involved (and that means participate) with people by constructing your own learning network. I know it seems like a lot of work but the payoff is enormous. I'll assume you already know that though since you are reading this blog.
So what is my point? Our students already understand the idea of networking socially to improve their own knowledge. If you have any doubts simply ask your students what they have learned from YouTube recently I had one student tell me they learned how to change the power cord on their dryer because the power cord on it didn't match up with their outlet (this is a middle school kid and I don't think that even I would be comfortable doing that). It is time for us as educators to catch up with our kids and begin to utilize the global resources that are at our disposal. By networking with our colleagues on a global scale we can provide enriching lessons to our students that are meaningful and relevant to the world that they live in. I remember when I first set out to be a teacher I longed for the day when I would have my own classroom but little did I know that eventually that classroom was going to be global.
So how do you become a networked teacher? Although this is a question I myself am still working on there are many great tools to help that will help aid you in building your own PLN (Personal/Professional Learning Network). Utilizing social media tools like Facebook or Twitter will give you access to a vast number of enthusiastic colleagues who will be chomping at the bit to drag you down the rabbit hole. Social bookmarking sites like Diigo will help you keep track of the vast amount of resources that you will have thrown at you as you begin your descent down that rabbit hole as well as sources you find on your own. Also don't forget the value of reading professional blogs because they are a great resource for mining ideas. Remember the last piece of being a networked educator (and the most intimidating) you actually need to put yourself out there as well. Don't just consume and redistribute back to your students. Make sure that you are doing your part by sharing your ideas and your struggles with other educators out there. Part of being a networked educator is producing as well as consuming content for our profession.
If you are anything like me the last part is really the most intimidating. I was very concerned about how I would feel if I put my ideas out there only to be laughed at as teachers with more (or less) experience thought my ideas were common or outdated. This changed when over the weekend I was invited by a friend of mine to participate in my first Twitter Chat on #sschat and the topic was over teaching civic engagement. I had a very positive experience and noticed very quickly that many of my posts were being commented on and retweeted. This taught me a valuable lesson and that was that somebody out there found value in what I had to say. I also noticed that the number of colleagues that began following me on Twitter began to explode after only one conversation that I posted maybe 3 or 4 comments on. I have made contact with teachers and administrators all around the country who have also begun sending me valuable resources that I can use in my class. So here is my advice to you if you are new to building your PLN like I am. Don't get drug down the rabbit hole...Dive!
Below I have posted some resources that I have found useful so please check them out.
How to Build Your PLN
Building Your PLN- Twitter 101
Scott,
ReplyDeleteRE: "This taught me a valuable lesson and that was that somebody out there found value in what I had to say. I also noticed that the number of colleagues that began following me on Twitter began to explode after only one conversation that I posted maybe 3 or 4 comments on.:
I always love reading your blog posts! I have taught this course 5 or 6 times. I always hear about how terrifying it is to put your ideas out there for the first time. I tell my learners that everyone's ideas and thoughts are valuable. They don't usually believe me until they have had the experience that you just had! You are ahead of the curve in this class. A Twitter chat is assigned later. :-) I am glad you are diving in head first!
Dr. Dell
Scott, I enjoyed you sharing your own experience at the beginning of this post. The first thing that I caught myself nodding my head with was this statement, "Furthermore it is expected that we are providing our student with the ability to navigate their way through this new interconnected digital world that is new even to us and how can we do that if we ourselves are illiterate concerning the capabilities of this new technology." That is exactly the world we live in now, where information to anything and everything is at our fingertips and you are exactly right, how can we teach our students that if we don't know how to ourselves? In my building, I am lucky enough to be the one trying to get the other classrooms to integrate technology more. Everyone in my building knows they can come to me for technology difficulties. Sometimes I find myself thinking "How can you not know how to check your e-mail?!" and then realize, I grew up with technology so it's just a part of my life, which makes things easy for me. I also like how your brought up YouTube as a popular site for our youth to learn on. My younger brothers (14) have been addicted to YouTube since they were old enough to know to use it. They watch all kinds of videos, mostly how to defeat a level in a video game, but the main point is they know how to locate material to teach them how to do something. It is amazing what you can learn on there and the internet in general!
ReplyDeleteExactly, part of the reason I chose this program was because I was afraid of becoming an antique as newer technologies were being introduced. I already felt like much of what I was doing was outdated and I needed to reinvent the way I do things in my classroom. I had a conversation with a teacher a while ago about why I chose this program instead of admin and when I told her she told me "well I am too close to retirement to change what I'm doing now." That really upset me and I asked her what she would do if she was going to a doctor and discovered the doctor was going to treat her using outdated methods?" I told her that she would probably find another doctor immediately but unfortunately our students don't get that choice and our decisions impact their education. I don't think she appreciated it much but hopefully it made her think.
DeleteI love everything about your post! When I started teaching in 2008, the district ordered brand new text books. One of the resources that came along with the textbooks was overhead transparencies to use throughout the various units. At that time I think most of the overheads had been wheeled into a closet, and our resource was already outdated. I chuckled when you talked about guarding your transparencies and going into auto pilot because I relate to it. I think we all have done that in some way, shape or form. My ELA friends were partial to binders, and so I followed their lead. You have a binder for every unit, and you put all your precious paper worksheets and resources in the binders. This year I have used way less paper than ever before. This is my first year with one to one Chromebooks, and I'm starting to forget what it is like to beg, borrow and scrounge for computer carts and labs. Having every student equipped with a computer on a daily basis has changed the way I teach.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your blog post! What stuck out to me most is making sure to share my own struggles and ideas with others. It is easy to communicate with co-workers at lunch time or afterschool, but I never gave much thought to getting it down in writing to share with the world. I follow many other teacher groups on Facebook where teachers can share their stories and ask each other questions. It is a lot like a virtual teachers lounge. Not a lot of room for reflection there. My goal is to make regular blog posts and focus on what is working and not working and how to make it better so I can maybe help out another teacher. I am looking forward to reading your posts in the future.
ReplyDelete